CCTV Footage
by Tess 4 5
Summary: No plot, just a scene and a flashback. Too short for a summary. The title may reveal enough. Enjoy. P.S.: Well, yes, now a little bit more. Another flashback and a progress ;-)
1. Tommy

**Usual notes and disclaimer:** I don't own any of the original characters nor the original Inspector Lynley Mysteries – they belong to Elizabeth George and the BBC.

I have borrowed the characters from the TV-Show and solely own the ideas of _my _stories and the developments _I've_ let them go through.

Please let me know if I did something terribly wrong (rating, grammar, spelling...). Thanks!

Please read and review!

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><p><strong>Author's note: <strong>I was in the middle of writing on another story when a scene crossed my mind. Had to write it down. Maybe there will be more. I said maybe...

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><p>No plot, just a scene.<p>

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><p>.<p>

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><p>The room was dark. Tommy sat there and sipped at his lukewarm tea. Today they had arrested a serial killer. Tommy should be happy, or at least contented, but he was not. He had, though reluctantly, agreed that Barbara would play decoy. They had put her in a real sexy green silk dress, hung some jewels around her neck, let her walk in some heels he would have thought would make her stumble and then they had let her in the cage. In fact the cage was a posh ballroom, stuffed with faceless yuppies, stuffed with waiters carrying trays with champagne and the usual nibbles, stuffed with cameras that saw every corner, but Tommy still thought they should have chosen some other woman. Not his Barbara.<p>

It was hard not to look at her but he had needed to check the surroundings. He had been supposed to watch out for the suspected man. Instead he had watched _her_ for hours. They had to wait for the moment most of the guests would have been gone and Barbara could play her role as the lonely one, remaining, waiting for an 'opportunity'. It had taken too long for Tommy's liking. He could not really hold himself back from putting an end to it but Nkata had convinced him to wait another hour. Tommy agreed though he saw that Barbara had grown tired. He could see her aching feet mirrored in her face. He had known she had wanted nothing else but to get home and snuggle on her sofa, eating some take away and watching telly. Still they had let her wander around for another fortyfive minutes until finally the suspected creature had entered the scene.

He had flirted with the sergeant and she had flirted with the serial killer. She had looked sad like she was supposed to look and acted like a lonely woman as if she had been one. That had been the point when Tommy realised she actually _was_ one. She had not just acted. That had been the moment when he realised that he actually wanted to set an end to her loneliness. Personally.

But the show on the floor had to go on and it did. Like in the script they had flirted, she had let him collect her coat, she had let him lead her out of the house and into the backalley where he had parked his car. There was the highest accumulation of policemen in London at that time. She had to let him kiss her, let him press her against the car. Tommy's fists had clenched, his teeth had nearly crumbled and he was nanoseconds away from an explosion that would have blasted the arrest. After that kiss she followed him in his car and at that time half a dozen snipers aimed at him. The machinery in the background had worked extraordinary well.

When he had put the rope around Barbara's neck and the gag into her mouth the barrel of a gun finally had pressed into his temple, a trigger clicked and he had frozen in his movements. The arrest had been quick and back at New Scotland Yard all they needed to do now was to put everything in a neat order.

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><p>Tommy and his team had watched some pre-sorted CCTV footage afterwards and briefly talked about the further handling. Barbara had still worn that green silky thing with a jumper around her shoulders and the heels in which she had been astonishingly very able to walk dangled on her finger. She had changed into some sneakers. But the dress still revealed a very admirable hip and the (false) jewels still highlighted her adorable cleavage. He had blamed his tireness for the sudden stutter in his speech, soon called it a day and dismissed his colleagues. Including Barbara.<p>

When all had gone home and he had been alone in the screening room he had rewound the tapes and had watched her going around at the ball. For about ten minutes he watched her dancing with some blokes, all worth to be unburdened from their teeth if Tommy would have something to say in that matter.

But he had not. He was not in any way related to his sergeant on a personal level. He was her friend but probably never her 'boyfriend'. But one thing he swore to himself was that he would never again let her do such a thing. Never again would he let her risk her life in such a way like tonight.

He rewound the tape again to a patch where Barbara was seen in full, turning around in that moment, her hair somewhat wafting as well as her dress, her eyes looking somewhere near the camera as if she would have looked and looked away again. He stilled the tape and just stared at her picture on the screen.

Tommy watched her curves. Tommy saw her eyes. He lost himself in thoughts looking into her eyes on the screen. Those eyes that could shoot daggers. Those eyes that could look so soothing. Those deep green pools that looked so sad.

_No!_ he thought. _You're never playing decoy again. As long as I have something to say in that matter you won't get into such a danger again._

He sat there for minutes thinking about what they had gone through for years, what he had made her do, what he had given her to suffer, what he had been to her, what he might have been, what she might have been to him, what he wanted himself to be for her in the future. He swallowed.

_I love her._

This realisation hit him hard and it hit him deep. It shocked him and it pleased him. He had to do something.

_Tomorrow I have to... what? Tell her? Make a fool of yourself? Stupid. As if..._

He sipped again on his now cold tea and grimaced. He needed something stronger so he poured a drop of Whisky in it. He knew there always was a flask of that strong stuff in the desk in the screening room.

Tommy raised his mug to the stilled picture of Barbara. He felt miserable.

"Cheers, Barbara!" he said loud.

"Cheers..." came a soft voice from the door.

Tommy whirled around.

.

...


	2. Barbara

**Author's note: **While publishing the story the next chapter already had formed in my head. Sorry. I'm weak... Yeah, some of you know that.

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><p>Still no plot, just another scene.<p>

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><p>.<p>

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><p>The car park was deserted. She sat in her mini and smoked. Today they had arrested a serial killer. Barbara should be happy, or at least satisfied with the result, but she was not. She had suggested that she would play decoy. She had worn a dress, wore some false jewels and also had put on her heels that she normally had stuffed in the back of her cabinet - too less opportunities for those. She felt the eyes of her cheeky colleagues on her and could have sworn that her DI had blushed. They had carried her to this posh party, with too much brainless idiots, with too much bored waiters carrying too much champagne and tasteless nibbles, with too much cameras watching her - which was in fact good because they had guarded her.<p>

It had been hard not to think of all the eyes following her but it had to be for her own safety. She had started to spot the cameras and had imagined that Tommy would be her personal guard. She had danced with some of those self-regarding blokes who bored her deeply. She had prefered to dance with somebody different. Someone with whom she would have the chance to banter, to talk, really _talk_ and not just babbling about some bloody high society stuff. She would have had _his_ arms in her back, she would have put her hand in _his_, she would have had the chance to lay her head on _his_ shoulder. She would have had the chance to pretend just a bit for just a while. But she had had a role to play, a role that had been tailor-made for her.

The lonely one.

In fact she had had hours to wander around and get bored to death with all those uninteresting people around. But she had had to be patient and wait for the moment later in the night when she could act out her role, giving him the impression to be her 'last chance'. She nearly had stopped the whole farce at some point but if he had not been there they would have told her already or stopped the operation somehow and so she had stayed. Though deep inside she had wanted nothing more than to get out of those shoes, slump onto her sofa and watch some telly until she would sleep. Then this creature finally had entered the scene.

He had been not at all what she would call her target but she had had to play her role, she constantly had told herself. In fact she felt more alone than ever, flirting with a serial killer she knew would be arrested later, seeing the irony in this flirt, with the only purpose to nick him, as well as feeling the sarcasm having him flirt with her just to be his next victim. She would have prefered talking stiffly with Lord Asherton. This would have been at least a _real_ feeling.

But then and there had not been the time nor the place for it. She had had to banter with him, she had had to let him help her on with her coat, she had had to follow him giggling to his car in some dark alley. Though she had known of a good working safety machinery in the background, though she had known that multiple eyes watched over her, that in that alley would be an enormous number of policemen, she still had been horribly afraid then. She had known that the hardest part of being the victim was still to follow. She disgustedly had kissed him, she had let him press her against the car. She had had to hold back her vomit and think of something else. On her way to the ball she had had thought of this situation briefly, how she should react if it comes to this. First she had had thought about trying to imagine her DI but that would have left a horrible memory whenever they would have met thereafter. So she had closed her eyes and had pictured her first stupid boyfriend. There had not been much difference.

When the criminal finally had put the rope around her neck and the gag into her mouth she was literally scared to death. Her fear had been genuine. What if they would not make it in time? What if they had lost track? What if he would not mind a bullet and continue to struggle her? What if they would decide they need more evidence and let him go _too far_?! All she had wanted in that moment had been that somebody would rescue her. She focussed on her dark haired knight and tried to breath calm, to get over her panic.

_Tommy! Help me!_

Instead it was an armed officer and the clicking trigger of his gun had been the sweetest sound she had ever heard. Another PC had helped her out of the car and had brought her back to New Scotland Yard. _He_ had not been at the car, _he_ had not been in the crowd of policemen, _he_ had not been there to take her in his soothing arms. In fact, she believed that now, he had not been there to absent himself from the 'special treatment' of a serial killer who had harmed one of their colleagues - her.

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><p>Back at the office she had put off her shoes and slipped into some cosy sneakers, no matter how funny those might look with her dress she still wore. She had thrown a jumper around her shoulders against the upcoming cold. It had not been very helpful against the cold- and sickness she felt when they had watched the pre-sorted CCTV footage and had talked about the further handling. Despite the heartfelt congratulations from her colleagues she had felt entirely alone in the full room. She could not focus on what the DI had said in the front. She had not been able to follow his words. Obviously nobody had seemed to care or had expected she would say something.<p>

She had yawned extraordinarily notable. She finally had wanted nothing more than to get home and have a shower, brush her teeth, snuggle into her blanket on the sofa, get lulled away from some stupidity on the tv-screen. Finally Tommy had dismissed them. All. He had made no intentions to keep her back for a word or two in private.

So she had left to her car, had lit a cigarette and had sat there for quite some time, thinking about the evening, the dullness of the ball, the long boring hours of waiting, later the culmination of events, much later the lack of a proper thanks. He had just looked at her. He had just stared at her cleavage like he had not seen one ever. Barbara had snorted in disgust before she had remembered the hidden pain in his eyes. She had remembered how he had looked at her when she had arrived in the screening room and had been greeted by 'the boys', like she had named their colleagues. They had slapped her on her back, they had congratulated her, Winston even dared to hug her. All she had been able to see had been Tommy's face. He had smiled, genuinely, but with a little twist in the corners of his mouth. He had simply watched her and she thought she had seen a certain unhappiness.

He had not even asked the inevitable question after a case if she would fancy a pint. Well, it was two in the morning, but still...

_It would have been better if we had been alone. We could have talked about it. _She laughed out of the front window._ We would _not_ have talked about it. We never talk about it, about how we feel, what is going on in our minds. How deeply I have fallen for this stiff, stupid, sweet, handsome Lord Police Officer. Bloody hell, and he had not even hugged me._

She determined that she should go back and see if he had not sneaked out through some back door. She flicked the cigarette out of the window and left her car. At least she had to thank him and tell him that she never ever would be doing such thing again. And perhaps to demand a hug from him, for that was what she needed the most. As the friend he was, as the best friend she ever had and as the man she so...

On the stairs up to the screening room she suddenly realised that she loved him. She nearly tripped.

_Get it off your head, he is just your DI, he is just a good friend, he will never mirror your feelings that way. Silly.  
><em>

Tommy was not in his office so she went back to the screening room. She arrived in the doorframe and froze. Yes, he still was there. He sat in the dark and watched her stilled image on the screen. Barbara, wearing that dress she never thought would be looking so... sexy on her figure. She saw the sparkling jewels, the determined look she gave almost exactly into the camera. And she saw _his_ handsome, screen-lit profile as he watched her image for minutes, breathing deeply, wrinkling his forehead, visibly thinking. The expression in his face was suffering, painful, in fact it also was somehow sad. Barbara felt a wave of emotions crush over her. She leaned on the frame and blinked away a tear.

_What is going on in his mind?_ she wondered. _Why is he staring at my picture? Is he...?_

They swallowed simultaneously. She held her breath when with a sharp intake his suddenly went uneven.

She watched him pouring a not too small drop of whisky in his probably icecold tea and raising the mug to the screen.

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><p>"Cheers, Barbara!" His voice was ragged.<p>

"Cheers..." she softly answered.

Tommy whirled around.

.

...

**Author's note:** Just to make it clear. I don't believe and I don't allege that the Metropolitan police of London would harm any suspect or criminal they arrest. At least I hope it.

And yes, I know and you know that we can expect a third chapter...


	3. Finally

**Author's notes:** Finally a bit of a plot ;-)

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><p>They stared at each other for two or three seconds.<p>

Barbara leaned against the doorframe with her arms folded in front of her chest, thereby building a barrier between them. She now found it a stupid idea to have come here again and even more stupid to have stayed and worst of all to unhide her presence. _I should have sneaked back before he had noticed. Why didn't I? Why did I say something?_

Tommy had turned on his seat and watched her carefully. _Why had she come back? She is not supposed to see me here, now, in the state I am, still watching her picture on the screen. She's supposed to be at home, safely in her bed._

And she was too far away to hug her immediately.

"How long have you been standing there?" He did not want to sound angry but his voice actually was, more of himself but how could she know?

"Quite a while. I-" She answered with a still soft voice.

"Are you spying on me?"

"Are _you_ spying on _me_?!" She pointed her chin to the screen.

"I just..." Tommy swallowed, raked a hand through his hair and briskly turned back to the monitor. Then he realised that the frozen image of Barbara still was occupying the full screen. _She must think I... she must believe that... She had to realise that she... Gods, I even can't sort my thoughts. _He tapped the play-button and the footage went on.

"I had to, throughout the entire evening. Just stayed a while to finish some papers." He mumbled and tilted his chin to the stack of files on the desk, next to the bottle of Whisky. "I just wanted to sort some thoughts to get this case cleared. I was just thinking."

"Does this help?" Barbara, in the meantime having arrived in the front row, took the whisky bottle and raised it. Then she plonked in the chair next to him and they watched the footage together in silence.

Barbara repeated a soft "Cheers!" and pulled at the bottle. The liquid burned on her tongue and warmed her throat.

_I need a hug._

The screen showed a nearly emptied ballroom and a lonely couple dancing - the sergeant and the criminal. When that couple left and the next shot showed them stumble through this back alley Tommy made a disapproving sound.

"Are you angry?" Barbara carefully asked.

"Oh, hell, yes, I _am_. This had been a very, very stupid idea."

"We've succeeded, haven't we?"

"Yes, but what if the slightest error had occured?"

The screen now showed the two snogging at the car.

"Disgusting." Tommy snarled.

"Do you think _I_ enjoyed it?" Barbara snarled back.

Then the monitor showed in every horrible detail how he had gagged her, how he had struggled her with the rope, how he had tied her to the seat, how he had fumbled with his belt.

"I was so afraid something would go wrong." Tommy choked.

"Imagine, _I_ was scared to death." Barbara whispered, keeping her eye on the horror on the screen. With Tommy next to her it was entirely better. She took another gulp from the bottle. _I need a hug._

"You will never do such thing again, Barbara." He also still faced the screen.

"Believe me, I won't."

They watched the arrest and after the car had carried Barbara away the tape stopped.

For a while they both stared at the dark blue light on the screen.

"Where have you been?" She sounded reproachful. _I had needed a hug._

He knew she would ask. He knew what she meant. "I sat in the observation car. I've followed every move of yours." _I've been spying on you._ "I've watched you dancing with those idiots and saw how you grew tired. We've nearly ended this farce earlier." I_ nearly ended it._

"I mean after the arrest." Her voice was softer now. _I had needed you then._

He had wanted to get to her immediately but Winston had held him back. "Nkata and I needed to arrange some matters with the tapes and the cooperation with the snipers. And then..." His voice trailed off.

"Yah?"

Tommy sighed deeply. "I just hopped off the transporter when Ardery called me and asked for details of the arrest."

"As if it couldn't have waited until tomorrow morning." Barbara snorted. _To hell with bloody Ardery. I had needed a hug from you right then._

"Indeed. And then Winston held me back and forced me to get back to the station. He said I do not need to see all the details of the arrest."

"I understand."

"He said he would like to go on working under my governement so I better should not get near the arrested as long as I'm so terribly furious." _He had assaulted you._

"I see."

"I think I would have smashed him up." _He would have deserved it. _Tommy's jaw muscles already clenched again.

"Oh." Barbara saw his tension and recognised how white the knuckles of his fingers were when he gripped the armrest. She nearly had raised her own hand to soothe his. But then he relaxed again.

"Winston had said we would need to start with the wrapping up immediately." Tommy nearly begged for understanding. "I had wanted to get to you as soon as possible but duty had called."

Barbara sighed. "I understand." she whispered. "I know now. But in that alley I just needed a hug from you."_ I still need it now._

They still stared at the blank screen. Tommy sighed. Then he abruptly got up from his seat. So abruptly that the light aluminium thing simply crashed on its backrest. Barbara winced.

"Oh, sorry, I..." Once more he raked through his hair, not knowing how this tensed situation will proceed. He just wanted to hug her, he just wanted to soothe her, just wanted to tell her. He just wanted to kiss her. He could not. The situation was far too loaded with barriers. Physical barriers like armrests and whisky bottles as well as all those mental barriers they had built up carefully for years, to protect them from their true feelings, to keep them away from possible hurt. He shut down the projector and the room turned even darker, the only lights now coming from the nightshift lamps in the corridor and the little green exit sign above the door. He still wanted nothing more than to take her in his arms and kiss her.

"Fancy a drink?" he croaked. _What a stupid question. It's after two. Reasonable people would go home at that time._

Barbara stood and raised the bottle. "Thanks. This will do."

She pulled at the bottle again and handed it over to him. "Cheers." she whispered and made herself busy with the knocked down chair. Tommy took a gulp himself and screwed the bottle. Instead of hiding it in the desk where it belonged he let it slip into the pocket of his jacket. A few seconds passed with both fiddling with actually nothing. He rearranged the already neatly ordered files on the desk and she adjusted the chair accurate to a millimetre in the row.

Tommy harrumphed. _I need to kiss you._

"Shall we?" he asked and motioned the way to the door.

_If you're not going to hug me we can just as well leave._ Disappointed Barbara just nodded and they left the screening room. Though in the corridor there was only the dim nightshift allumination it nearly stung and hurt the vision. When Tommy stole a glance at Barbara he saw something glistening in her eyes.

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><p>"Rough day, huh?" he thought that everything he could have said would have been awkward. He just wanted to kiss her and tell her he would be there for her from now on.<p>

"Yah. Kind of." Her voice was dripping with sarcasm.

In silence they walked towards the car park. They both just nodded when the duty officer of the night shift looked up from his desk and wished them a good night before they walked down. On the stairs Barbara finally spoke again.

"It's not just the danger that I had been in. I kind of feel... dirty. I feel a bit like I need a shower. And I definitely still need to brush my teeth." Barbara sighed.

"Ah, get rid of it?" He knew what she had meant.

"Mhm." Barbara nodded. "Get clean."

"I could replace that disgusting kiss with mine." Tommy suggested, first intended as a joke but when he started to speak he knew he meant it from the heart.

In that moment they had arrived at a fire door where he stopped and held it open for her. She also stopped and looked into his eyes. Those dark marbles that always look so earnest, so concentrated on a task. But she also had seen them laughing at her, teasing her with those sweet little wrinkles around them deepening. In fact those eyes looked very serious now. Barbara realised that the offer was genuine.

When he stopped to hold the door open he looked in her eyes. He saw confusion, he saw a flash of approval, he saw another flash of longing, he saw more irritation and he saw how her eyes widened. He knew he should kiss her now but then he had hesitated one second too long and the moment was gone and Barbara went through the door.

_Blimey! _he inwardly cursed._  
><em>

When Barbara had seen the seriousness of this offer she had thought he would give her a kiss immediately. But he just had looked at her, probably she had misunderstood the look in his eyes, obviously he had been just waiting for her to pass through the door. So she had turned her face away and had gone on.

_What a pity..._

Then they finally arrived at his car and stopped.

"Can I take you home?" He registered the double meaning and blushed a little._ I want to take you home with me._

"Sure." Barbara answered. "Just promise you will pick me up in the morning." _And let me share your breakfast table._

She blushed a little too.

They stared at each other. They drowned in each other's eyes. Involuntarily he shifted a little closer and took her elbow. Instinctively she turned a little towards him and lifted her hand, not placing it on his waist but hovering above it.

"I still need a hug, Tommy!" she nearly whispered._  
><em>

Hearing how sweet she called him by his name Tommy felt his heart bursting. Instead of simply putting his arms around her to give her a friendly hug he encircled her waist tenderly and pulled her close with the only intention to kiss her.

"And I still want to kiss you!" he whispered before his lips met hers.

In the end it all was so easy.

They stood in the middle of a carpark lane and held onto each other tightly. Their bodies were pressed close, their arms encircled each other, their lips touched tenderly at first, then it became more and more passionate. His hands slid under the losely draped jumper and caressed the delicate skin in her back, her fingers tugged at the collar of his dinner jacket, pulling herself up to him. Decidedly breathless they broke the kiss.

"You may not believe it but in the screening room I have realised that I love you." Tommy whispered with his lips still hovering over hers.

"Guess what?" Barbara had her eyes still closed. "I've realised something similar."

Gently their lips met again.

"And what could that be?" Tommy dared not to open his eyes.

Softly their lips met again.

"When I stumbled up the stairs back to you I found out that I love you."

Their lips met again in a sweet kiss.

"What a splendid coincidence."

Then their kiss turned passionate again.

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><p>The next morning Barbara found a pack of pop corn from the sweets vending machine on her desk with a note saying "ask the DI" and a second post-it on it with Winston's identifiable scrawly writing:<p>

"CONGRATULATIONS!"

At the same morning Tommy found a CD-ROM on his desk, labeled with a date and "car park footage". A post-it on it said "original deleted!". A second post-it said in Winston's identifiable scrawly writing

"FINALLY!"

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